Yes, that monstrous white refrigerator needs to be replaced with a COUNTER-DEPTH stainless steel one. Yes, I need a rug. Yes, I need a tall, industrial looking garbage can to the right of the fridge. Yes, I need two more vintage locker baskets to put on top of my china hutch. Yes, I need a tongue-n-groove ceiling painted white or pale blue or pale green. Yes, I need all of the appliances to be stainless steel. Yes, I need new light fixtures. Yes, I need a beadboard backsplash to cover the army green colored paint that's on the wall there now. And, YES, I would LOVE to have white marble counter tops with grayish-black veining....EVEN THOUGH they're not practical.
The door on the right side of the picture leads in to our Master Bedroom.
No, I haven't shown you that room yet, as there is NOTHING to show.
It is literally a room with a mattress on the floor and an antique dresser pushed up against one wall. No joke.
We sleep in the much, much prettier Guest Bedroom,
and will continue to do so until we can afford to fix up the Master.
I know, it's weird, but that's how I roll. :-)
The doorway to the Living Room (on the right) is the one we opened up to give the house a more open floor plan feel. Before, you wouldn't have been able to see the piano in this shot:
Switching gears, a lot of you have posted pictures of your Halloween decor on your blogs. I have seen a lot of spider-related decor this year.
But you haven't seen spider-related decor until you check out we found in the Kitchen sink at our house last night.
I know.
I'm freaking out too.
I could BARELY sleep last night.
Kevin killed it with Raid and we scooped it up into this five gallon bucket.
I'm kidding.
It's a tupperware bowl that previously housed Guacamole, but HONESTLY this suckers body is about two inches in length!!!! When it's legs were outstretched it was like four inches from tip to tip. {{shudder}}
We did a search online and the only thing we could figure out was that it was a Black House Spider. And, YES, they are venomous. Not lethal, but definitely venomous enough to warrant a trip to the E.R.
WHY!? WHY did this thing have to wander into the house!?
I am so jumpy now. I feel like everything that touches me is surely a Black House Spider.
If anyone knows anything about this wretched creature and would care to share, I welcome all info.
Okay, enough creepy stuff...let me end this post by showing you a sneak peek of something my Mom is creating for letteredolive.com:
We'll be launching soon...just anxiously awaiting some custom labels and getting everything photographed and added to the website. Won't be long now, I promise!
Layla :-)
PS...Did I mention that last month a COCKROACH crawled across MY FACE in the middle of the night? Oh yeah, I said it. About fifteen minutes after that I found it hanging out on my ARM. I'm dyin' over here people... :-(
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45 comments:
Oh, I LOVE the power! I ask, and I receive! I can't believe you haven't shown off that side more! That bench is adorable, and the cabinet is just dreamy! Oh. my. god. that spider is disgusting. I don't know if I could live in the same house after seeing that. I, too, would think a house spider was always on me. ICK!
Oh wow. I'm feeling creeped out just reading about the spider. Reminds me of when I was laying bed and all of a sudden a huge spider was climbing up my arm. NOT COOL.
Beautiful hutch! And isn't it funny how the Master is the most often neglected room? That just means we are giving, selfless people right? We wouldn't want our guests to suffer through ugly decor!
That bug is seriously gross, but works really well for Halloween. See something like that found in my house would be absolutely loved by my three sons!!
P.S.: I love your kitchen and all of the things that you want to do with it. Your entire house looks really great. I love your style!
I love your kitchen! However, I could do without the spider. And the cockroach story. I am just so glad I didn't read this at night or I'd be reaching for the wine. :shudder: Please tell me you don't live in San Antonio!
Darling, call the exterminator!! We just had ants and I INSISTED we call someone to take care of it. So far we've been pretty ant free.
AAHHH! I can handle spiders, but when it comes to Roaches especially the big ones i'm freaking out!! Now youve got me looking around and twitching..lol
By the way, beautiful kitchen.
Eeek! Freaking out here! I can deal with the spider, but roaches?!?! Ewww, they drive me nuts.
Love the kitchen!!! And the color you created on the baskets is perfect!
You are sooo cute! I hate spiders too but after raising a little boy I have made my peace with them.
Your house looks fabulous!
We were coming home one night a few weeks ago and a spider about the size of the one in your picture dropped onto the windshield of our van. We think it was a brown recluse. We found another close in size on our back porch last week. I'm just praying that one doesn't find it's way INTO our house!
~ Jenny
www.themaddoxfamily.net
Yikes....hope all those bad and creepy bugs leave your home. I love your pictures. SOOOO inspired. Keep them coming, but those bug pictures just make my skin crawl!!!! XXX Annie
Oh, I'm so glad to know that bugs get into beautiful homes, too, and not just so-so homes like mine! Okay, I'm not really glad you have bugs. I'm sorry, actually. But thanks for keeping it real for us. I know you still have a lot you want to do in your kitchen but it is already beautiful. You do such great work. Amazing!
Ok, I'm FREAKING OUT now!!!! Stupid dog just tried to lick my foot and I about stomped him to death!!!
YEP, I'd be calling the bug guy.....we have ours sprayed MONTHLY!!
Such a cute kitchen...thanks for sharing....and it's ok, if you don't share the roach or spider.
Roaches in that beautiful home , I don't think so , we lived in a roach infested apartment , it took quite some time after moving to lose that jumpy feeling , I will never forget turning on the light and waiting to see who was with me , but on your face , oh honey you poor thing , that is dreadful, are there people friendly treatments I am sure there are, old houses and bugs seem to live nicely together , get em girl.
Kepp up the good work , I love to see all of your house.
Chris
I am so NOT a bug person. Yikes that spider was one big ugly dude. Don't even get me started on the other critter you spoke of.
LOVE the kitchen, despite all the "still need to" your house looks wonderful! Your mom's little design looks very interesting!
Now, do tell, what do you have up your sleeve for the master bedroom and the bathroom (I know ya got one of those somewhere in that cute cottage of yours).
Hope you're feeling better.
Your kitchen is fabulous! It's so dramatic.
If you want to get rid of roaches without a major investment in exterminators, buy some Borax and make a thin line, during the day (when they're not around), all around the edges of your rooms. Just live with an unbroken little trail of Borax for a while. The roaches won't cross it and after swearing at you for a while they will find somewhere else to go.
At least, this worked in our DC apartment long ago. I never saw a roach again, which was good because I was ready for the loony bin. I don't know about a house...it might work!
That cockroach story has my skin crawling! We just sprayed our house for them. They seem to be mostly localized in the garage, but still just the thought of one crawling around in my bed....
you've got this amazing house and in the "bug world" it's all the buzzzz.....therefore, they are all coming and checking it out.
have a blessed night and don't let the bed bugs bite.
oh my goodness, i'm so silly this evening, i need to get some sleep!
Blech! A cockroach? Blech!
Oh. My. Word.
Good Night.
I don't even know what to say.
OK, first, your kitchen is fantastic. I love everything about it, even sans rug and garbage can and everything else only you notice is missing. What I see is pure fabulousness (not a word, I know). It is so put together, sister! I need you to fly to Cali and restyle my house, pronto.
NOw, onto the disgustingness of that spider. I.would.freak.out. If it makes you feel any better, I have had a close encounter with a large, furry, warm RAT that pushed it's way through my legs while I stood innocently doing laundry at midnight in my old garage, and I ended up laying flat on top of my hubby's car in one fell jump, screaming at the top of my lungs. Not cute.
Then I have had 2 close encounters with POTATO BUGS (no, not rolly pollys. POTATO BUGS. google image it, you'll die) one of which was IN MY SHOES in my bedroom. OMG. I know your pain. I jumped at everything for over a week. My husband, the *$@F@#%&#, never runs into anything.
OK, do I get an academy award for drama via posting? ;-)
Wow! That spider is freaking me out and the cockroach...yikes!
Love the kitchen and the bedroom is adorable.
I've been reading your blog for about a week now... I love your home and your taste! I had to come out of 'lurker' mode to let you know that we live in central Mississippi, and our house has a huge yard with lots and lots of trees. And apparently there is some kind of wood roach that LOVES our trees and will invariably make it into our house from time to time. This particular kind of roach is - literally - about 3 inches long and FLIES. One particularly nasty roach attacked my husband last week when he was trying to kill it. The sucker flew across the room and landed on his leg! I would have DIED.
Love your blog!
Ewwww, I hate spiders & roaches...yuck! So I know how that feels. Luckily we don't have too many inside the house around here.
Loved the extra tour of your house...we are all drooling over it all. You will get there eventually, on your wish list, I promise you.
Did you get my email this week?? I have had some email problems, so maybe you didn't. And I sent one a couple weeks ago where I asked where you wanted to go shopping, I listed a bunch of places. Email me back! Let's get our plans finalized for Monday...we're still on, right? Looking forward to it.
oh, oh, oh - I love your taste. There is so much for me to copy, even though you say it has a lot to be done. I love the wire baskets on your hutch, I love the topiaries on your fridge, I love the idea of your ceiling. i am officially in love.
I'll be squirming with spider anxiety in the corner for the rest of the afternoon if anyone needs me.
Love your kitchen. Would love to see the china hutch. The Hubby and I used to have a big industrial tin garbage can in our last house. I LOVED it! I don't have room for it in this kitchen or it would definitely be here. Good call on that!
Sorry about the creepy crawlies..yuck!
I am so loving your kitchen, and your impecable style as usual. Layla, you are amazing. I can't wait to see what's next.
oxox
Jennifer
Omg. I'm not sure I'll be able to sleep tonight. THANKS A LOT! A spider and a roach in the same century???
Your kitchen is sooooooo nice. Love that china hutch! And the bench? LOVE ot!
Everytime I see photos of your guest room I think it's a magazine photo. :o)
Your kitchen is fabulous! OMG that spider is so icky. Hubby killed a rattle snake in our flower bed yesterday and I couldn't sleep at all last night. And I totally had a roach experience too. Except I was pregnant and it was on my leg. I freaked out and made my husband crawl on the floor to find it in the middle of the night since I knocked it across the room when I felt it. Yuck! Can't wait to see what your mom has been working on :)
-Hayley
I can't stand spiders (or as my granddaughter calls them "piders"). They really are yucky.
I just e-mailed you about the trip to B'ham on Monday and I see that Rhoda has left a comment here too. Please check your e-mail so we can get together on this (I have told Rhoda I may not be able to come so I need to get with you on this if possible).
BTW, your kitchen is fabulous! Looking forward to meeting you in person soon.
Judy
I love your stuff, but that spider could go! Here's a disgusting fact/myth? anyway, I heard it somewhere that people swallow like 14 spiders a year!!!! Talk about disgusting!
The kitchen is GORGEOUS! And I honestly thought the spider was going to be a little Halloween related tidbit... until I read further! Oh my gosh, you poor thing... I cannot believe the size of that thing! (Still shuddering)...Donna
it's halloween...enjoy the spider!
Okay now I have goosebumps all over me from your pic and story of spiders and roaches, I HATE those things!! You had left me a comment about my banner for Halloween and I just wanted to let you know it is from Martha Stewart and they sell it at Michaels! Love your blog and visit ya all the time.
Hugs~Kelly
We all have wish lists for our houses, but your kitchen looks great even as it is! I know you feel though, I have a laundry list of things I want to get/do to my house. Which is why I continue to play the lottery every week!
I love that you are giving us a peek into your world. It looks so clean and fresh.... until you shoe us that spider, smile. I heard that you cant spray your house to keep them away because of the hair's on their legs ??? I dont know but we sure do have our share too. Dont feel bad or alone.... I a freak about it too. I just cant stand the thought of something crawling around my house...<><>EKK<><>!!
That was not nice. The 5 gallon bucket thing got me. After a few moments of reeling at the thought of it...and the possibilities one could be in my house right this very second...I gathered up enough strength to keep reading to see how you handled it and saw you were kidding. LOL. It was still bigger than I ever want to meet. I'll go back and finish reading the post now, *phew*.
Good Morning Layla!
LOVE your kitchen - the black is GORGEOUS!! Everything is coming together beautifully - this is SO fun to see.. and I hear you about those bugs .. Florida = BUGS!!!
xo,
Kim
Okay Layla, I just cannot even BEGIN to discuss that cockroach situation. My worst nightmare. I wouldn't even be alive to type the post.
I'm doing our own house and having a meltdown all of a sudden. If you feel like coming over and helping me design---feel free! Four kids (that I also homeschool) with no nanny and a husband that is out of town 75% of the time has officially kicked my butt. I'm too stressed to design my dream house. The drywall is coming. I'm freaking out!
dont wish for white carrera marblel with gray veins - there isnt' any available these days. I've had it on order for months now. no luck. let me know if you know of any - I need 3 slabs.
Miss Layla,
My hubby is hounding me, so I've got to ask. How do you like your black cabinets? I'm currently prepping mine for painting and I was just going to do either a white or a cream color and he really wants black. He is in love with your kitchen. Our kitchen, dining area, and living area are one space (we took out the walls) so it's not a tiny kitchen (anymore). We don't get a ton of light, but we do get more light now that everything is open. So, do you love them? Would you do black all over again? Do you feel it made your kitchen feel dark or smaller? Would you have preferred White? Thanks in advance for any and all advice you can share.
Omgosh you poor thing, a spider a roach I'm wincing here...yikes, I once had a centipede fall from the ceiling onto my face while sleeping Yucko, we had the house sprayed after that inside and out...uhg, the things that lurk without notice when moving into a new home and remodeling... On a lighter note,,you are one awesome decorator I just love all your post,,,hugs, lisa
Holy schnikeys, I'm reading more of your blog and saw. that. spider. and about lost it. And a cockroach on your FACE??? Where do you live woman?? The Amazon?? :)
About 6 years ago hubby and I were moving (and I was very pregnant) and I was clearing out what was under the bathroom sink in the master bedroom and guess what what there? One of those giant spiders!! I screamed bloody murder and my husband thought I was going into labor. LOL He had to kill the thing, I had to leave the room. I haven't seen another one until now. It still gives me the heeby jeebies. And we have those giant roaches here and I hate them. My daughter screamed bloody murder from her bathroom last week and we thought she got hurt, nope, it was one of those nasty roaches. Yuck! Hubby had to kill it. LOL I don't know what I would do without him.
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